Poly(thioether) grafted Ti3C2Tx MXenes: New dielectric elastomer nanocomposites with high area strain at low driving voltage

• Published in: European polymer journal 2023-04, Vol.188, p.111945, Article 111945
• Main Authors: Feng, Zhanbin, Feng, Guofei, Yue, Xinchen, Zhang, Xing-Hong
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Dielectric elastomer nanocomposites; Enhanced electromechanical performance; Low driving voltage; poly(thioether) grafted Ti3C2Tx MXenes
• ISSN: 0014-3057; 1873-1945
• DOI: 10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2023.111945

We report a new method to prepare poly(thioether) grafted Ti3C2Tx MXene DE nanocomposites by using MXeneK-initiated decarboxylative ROP reaction between COS and FGE, followed by the DA reaction of BMI and MXeneK-FGE: the DE nanocomposites exhibit high actuated strain at low electric field (17.1%@11.9V/μm), better than the previous systems (0.7%∼10%@12 V/μm). [Display omitted] •Poly(thioether) grafted Ti3C2Tx MXene DE nanocomposites were prepared through the pretreated MXene (MXeneK) initiated ring-opening polymerization of furfuryl glycidyl ether (FGE) and carbonyl sulfide (COS), followed by the Diels-Alder crosslinking reaction between furan groups and BMI;•The poly(thioether) chains are grafted onto the MXeneK surfaces, leading to the significant decrease of dielectric loss (below 0.04);•Low MXeneK content (below 1.0 wt%) resulted in high ε’ (∼12.3) and low elastic modulus (below 0.5 MPa);•The resultant DE nanocomposite present high area strain (17.1 %@11.9 V/μm), superior to previous systems (0.7 %∼10 %@12 V/μm). Dielectric elastomers (DEs) with high actuated strains at low electric fields have been a great challenge over the past few decades. In this work, we report the preparation of poly(thioether) grafted Ti3C2Tx MXene DE nanocomposites (MXeneK-FGE-BMI) with high area strain at low driving voltage (17.1 %@11.9 V/μm) by two steps: the pretreated MXene (MXeneK) initiated decarboxylative ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of furfuryl glycidyl ether (FGE) and carbonyl sulfide (COS), followed by the Diels-Alder (DA) crossslinking reaction between furan groups and bismaleimide (BMI). The grafting of poly(thioether) chains onto the MXeneK surfaces enables MXeneK well dispersed in the matrix, leading to the significant decrease of dielectric loss (tan δ, below 0.04@103Hz). Low content of MXeneK (below 1.0 wt%) resulted in high ε’ (∼12.3@103Hz) and low elastic modulus (Y, below 0.5 MPa). Therefore, the resultant DE nanocomposite present a high area strain of 17.1 % at a driving voltage of 11.9 V/μm, superior to the previous reports (0.7 %∼10 %@12 V/μm). This work provides a facile strategy to prepare DE nanocomposites with excellent electromechanical performances at low driving voltage.